Is the outdoors really over? I can’t believe how quickly the summer blows by these days. Was this year’s racing any better than in the past? Well it all depends on who ask I guess. Without a doubt the MX2 class was exciting. Yes, Pettis was THE GUY to beat at most rounds. If Jess was not on his game it was any one of the other five riders. Dylan Wright had some unreal weekends where he was the fastest guy on the track. Osby and his team mate Crown looked solid and don’t leave out last year’s champion Maffenbeier who had a few good rides. You can’t forget Marco Cannella and his team mate Hayden Halstead. That’s actually seven riders that all looked great at different points during the series. The last round is usually a bit boring. The past few years the champion has had a good lead and they just have to ride around and score some points to clinch the title. This year Pettis and Crown had a three point difference going into the last round. I was obviously cheering for Pettis but we’ve all seen Crown ride at Walton and he could take it too. The starts are everything in the lites class and if you get out of the first corner in a good position then you’re safe. If the dust settles after the start and you’re face down in the dirt, well that’s game over. This is exactly what happened to Joey. Starting in 40th with the guy you’re trying to beat out front is not what Crown had planned. Pettis rode a smart race and basically pulled away and scored maximum points for moto one. Joey worked his way to eighth that equalled a fifteen point difference going into the last moto of the series. What’s the game plan for both guys? If you’re Pettis, you make sure you get around the first corner clean and near the front. Make sure you are either leading or your following Crown. If you’re Joey, well you need to win the race and hope your competitor finishes 12th or worst. There’s really not much else you can do. I have witnessed in the past where that second place rider made it his focus to take out the competition. If I remember right the rider that was leading the series strapped on a helmet camera so he would have some proof if the said rider took him out on purpose. You never know what will happen I guess.
The MX1 class championship was pretty well set. Colton Facciotti had a heathy lead going into the last round. Thompson needed a miracle if he was looking to leave that weekend with the number one plate. I was surprised to see Colton really go for it in both motos. I thought he would sit back and take it easy for the win but there was some good bonus money for weekend overalls too so I guess, why not go for it. At the end of the day Colton clinched his fifth title in the MX1 class. Congrats to GDR and Colton for a great season. What happened to the rest of the riders? Well they were right there. Colton was just way more consistent at the end of the day. Thompson started a little slow in the first few rounds; Benoit was hot and cold; Matt Goerke didn’t look as comfortable as he did last year; Dillon was non-existent until the fifth round at Gopher when he surprised everyone with a moto win; Tyler on his Kawasaki looked really good but was just off the pace at a few rounds. His injury at Moncton really slowed him down unfortunately.
There were a few things I observed during the day. How cool was it to see Mike Brown and John Dowd battling in the second moto? Two legends still at it. Between those two you have just over 80 years of racing experience. It was great to see Felix Lopez come up from Mexico. That was one heck of a drive to race one event in Canada. I was surprised at his speed. Felix went 5-12 for the day. At the end of the day Mike Brown asked me, “Who is 577 on a KTM with FXR gear?” I told him it was some Mexican that came up to race for fun. Mike asked if I was going to trade him in for the fast younger version? I told him he was still safe for a while. The kid from Bermuda, Jyrie Mitchell looked awesome as well. It’s pretty cool to see all these riders attend a Canadian national event.
I guess that’s it for the outdoors part of the Triple Crown series. For the overall series leading the MX1 class is Cole Thompson over Facciotti. In the MX2 class Shawn Maffenbeier has a good lead over Marco Cannella. The Montreal supercross is next on the list. I am looking forward to only having to drive 20 minutes down the road for that event. See you at the races.